Balgus Eggwünd
Balgus Killingal Eggwünd VIII is a mountain dwarf residing in Guildtown, and a respected member of the Guild. He is currently the proud owner of The Broken Barrel Bar and Brewery and a co-owner of Ernan and Eggwünd: Blacksmith's at Large. Description Balgus is a Berserker Barbarian, an Oath of Conquest Paladin, and a Champion Fighter, whose specialties lie in dealing damage and taking it just as well. He's also a skilled blacksmith and brewer of many different types of booze, ranging from common ales to XXX. He wields whatever large and heavy weapons that he believes is best for him at the current time, currently being a Greatsword retrieved from the late Red Knights corpse, after it was purified by Green Knight. As well he wears little armor, preferring the comfort of furs to armor because his own skin is as hard as steel. Balgus' combat style is one of ferocity and rage, preferring to face situations head-on with little to no planning. His teammates appreciate his role as the meat shield on the battlefield, having saved the life of his allies countless times by standing fearlessly between them and danger. When a battle starts, Balgus commonly throws caution and control over his actions to the wind and jumps into a frenzy of attacks thrown with reckless abandon, fortunately for him and his friends but unfortunately for his foes, this style of combat is surprisingly effective. His combat became even more ferocious for a time when he made a deal with Zariel, granting him even more battle strength in exchange for his soul. With this deal, he was able to strike his foes incredibly hard using Zariel's own might as well as smite his foes with holy magic, you don't want to get on Balgus' bad side. After a Wish gone... sort of wrong, however, during a fight with the ancient black dragon Xenophasm, Balgus' soul was returned to him, and all powers he obtained through his pact with Zariel were lost. Biography Balgus grew up in a rather large mining town known as Voltunheim. Voltunheim lies in the northernmost region of Farli's Valley. Balgus was born to a family of Blacksmith's, his father, Balgus Eggwünd VII, was known across the Land as the Smith you went to for Battleaxes, legends even say the Balgus Eggwünd I was the one to forge the legendary Axe of the Dwarvish Lords. Balgus was raised on forging weapons until he reached adulthood and wished to join the military, wanting more for life than steel and heat. His father accepted his decision with open arms and even forged him his first axe to use in his tours. Shortly after enlisting, he met his wife Adra among the ranks, seeing her as a skilled fighter, he was instantly smitten, so they got married and had their son Väldnar. Shortly after Väldnar's birth, Balgus was ordered to go fight a rogue band of Dark Elves deep in the Underdark, so he waved his family goodbye and went along with his companions to fight, Adra stayed behind to watch over Väldnar. The attack on the Dark Elves ended quickly after only 3 days of Siege from the Dwarves, Balgus found it strange that so many Dwarves were needed to defeat such a small army, but nonetheless, he was happy to be able to return home so quickly. Upon his return to Voltunheim, Balgus and his company were met with nothing but ruins. As it turns out, the small army of Dark Elves was a ruse to lead away from the Dwarves so they could slip behind them and destroy their home. Balgus found his family, crushed under the ruins of his home, all dead. At that moment Balgus exploded with anger, and he was never the same sense, he ran away from his home in anger, just running, no thought in his mind, just to getaway. He made his south, traveling for 50 years, working as a sellsword to get by, killing plague-ridden rats and bears eating corn, before finally making his way to a small mining town in the Shimmerspeak Mountains, he built himself a small log cabin just outside of town and began to rest and mourn. He settled back into smithing again, making pickaxes for the miners and swords for the occasional adventurer, he even met a new love, a coal miner named Danna, funny, cute, and far too young for him, and Balgus had become happy again, until 49 years later when Danna and several others were killed by a collapsing mineshaft, and Balgus was left alone and broken again. He packed up his things and left town, not angry, just sad, and hiked his way down the mountains towards Guildtown, where he thought maybe, just maybe, he could try one more time to find happiness. Relationships Sparrow Matthias: Balgus has been slow to trust, or even like Sparrow, but there continued partnership both on the Battlefield and in their Bar has made him grow soft for the cat, even going as far as to worry for him on the night he was taken by the Lich, but don't tell him that. Svondir Lightborn: Svondir and Balgus have had a butting rivalry ever since the second Battle Royale, being the 2 fighters to be most skilled in melee in Guildtown, of course they want to constantly compare the size of their broadswords, Balgus has learned to trust and respect Svondir, and would lay down his life for him any day. Isaac Bromov: Balgus was slow to like Isaac at first, given that he has never liked anybody who hasn't presented themselves to be skilled in combat, but his healing and holy magic has more than proven to Balgus that he is an invaluable ally, and a good friend, being the jovial and free-spirited half of Svondir's "broom-up-the-ass" persona. Y'uh Boi: Balgus and Yorick have always gotten along well, given that they're both not entirely "there". They both respect the other's abilities and have participated in 2 Battle Royales together as partners. Y'uh is the brains to Balgus' brawn, and as such, they're the closest thing to a Dynamic Duo Guildtown has to offer. They're shared sense of humor cannot be ignored either, often working together to pull pranks, too much of the town's dismay. Skillmon Key: The late Skillmon was Balgus' first friend when coming to town, Balgus appreciated his sense of humor and his skills in a battle, as well as the crazy contraptions he's built. They lived together for a time under Balgus' roof, but their friendship came to a swift end when Skillmon was crushed under a dragon's corpse. Balgus held on to his lute for a time to remember his fallen friend but has recently given it away, as a way of moving on. Gil Gilson VII: Balgus and Gil have always gotten along decently well, seeing as Balgus kept to himself rather than causing any trouble. Balgus has found a newfound respect for Gil recently though after fighting dragons alongside him. Balgus sees Gil as a leader to be trusted. He's a cunning warrior and a good friend. Incinerator Ernan and Lucien Laurent: Balgus has built a new relationship with these two after deciding in the moment when chatting with them to pull a prank on the love birds Yohani and Reylana. Since then he's begun to enjoy their company, even going as far to invite Ernan to live with him and open a Smithy as business partners. Trivia * Balgus is based off of a one-off character from the D&D show "Critical Role", where Matt Mercer portrayed an NPC Dwarf of the same name. * Balgus is the only member of A-Team who hasn't died. * Balgus drank a potion that made him gain 60 lbs of fat * Balgus' long list of names comes from a really long-winded joke that hasn't ended * Balgus once skipped a phase of a hard boss fight by combining Blue Knight's "Path To The Grave" Channel Divinity, and his Zariel Crit, dealing over 300 points of damage in a single blow.